AQAP Statement in Support of ISIS and Threatening U.S.

In response to U.S. air strikes in Iraq, AQAP (al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula) has reportedly issued a statement supporting ISIS and blasting America and Obama, and urging attacks on the U.S.

The statement is titled "In the name of G-d the merciful. Subject: Statement on the US bombing on Iraq."here. It was issued by al Aswirti Media and posted on justpaste.it. You can use Google Translate or Bing Translator to translate (very rough translation, but it's enough to make out the important parts.)

ISIS has still not threatened to attack the U.S. It remains focused on building its Caliphate state in Iraq and Syria, and then in the other Muslim countries in the region. It does not control AQAP. Nor does it control its fanboys sitting behind computers in other countries who post threats to the U.S. [More...]

Some snippets via the translator:

We declare our solidarity with our Muslim brothers in Iraq against the crusade

...We also call on all Islamic groups to champion balathkhan brothers in America and make Jihad plan of America, militarily and economically and in the media, and we call on all Muslims anywhere-especially anyone who can enter America to champion his brothers by going to war against America with everything he can."

They also provide some advice to their supporters for avoiding U.S. drones:

Be cautious of spies and infiltrators on the ground because they are a key element in setting targets.

Be cautious in dealing with telephone and Internet networks.

Do not assemble or move in large columns.

Gather in fields or under trees if there are a lot of planes

Dig trenches to minimizing the consequences of the bombing.

It then sums up:

Conclusion: we reaffirm to our Muslim nation that we are in one trench with our Muslim brothers in Iraq against the American Crusader and Iranian conspiracy and their renegade Gulf rulers.

And it ends with a threat to Obama and the U.S., referencing "dams and borders", which I assume, but can't tell for sure from the translation means our dams and borders, not those of Iraq or Yemen.

AQAP, like Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida, has always been anxious to target America to "chop off the head of the snake", a phrase it repeats in this message. It has not endorsed al-Baghdadi, and remains loyal to Ayman al-Zawahiri, the successor of Al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden.

ISIS is a threat to all of the Middle East, but not to America at the present time, or even in the immediate future. I hope the media and fear-mongering Republicans make the distinction. If they don't, there will be a clamor to go to war against ISIS, which will not reduce or eliminate the threat from AQAP. War against ISIS will only exacerbate the danger from AQAP, giving it and its affiliates like Ansar al-Shariah, more reasons to attack us.

AQAP and its affiliates are not ISIS and do not speak for ISIS. But as predicted by many when the strikes began, they are solidifying support for ISIS among other militant groups that have so far not jumped on the Caliphate bandwagon.